Sealing door



Nov. 20, 1962 R. F. WHITE. 3,064,318

sEALNG DOOR lFiled Sept. 22, 1961 5 sheets-sheet 1 @any Nov. 20, 1962 R.F. WHITE. 3,064,318

SEALING DOOR Filed Sept. 22, 1961 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 BY y mj/M AMB Nov.20, 1962 R. F. WHITE SEALING DQoR Filed Sept. 22, 1961 5 Sheets-Sheet 3INVENTOR Nov. 20, 1962 R. F. WH| TE; 3,064,318

SEALING DOOR 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Sept. 22, 1961 BY I f R. F. WHITESEALING DOOR Nov. 20, 1962 -Kfm www a @mhvnwm H1: u (Po .NN I

m 3?@ m .a w u ATTORNEYS 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 LM/f' BY )j Filed Sept. 22.1961 United States Estant 3,064,318 SEALING DGR Robert F. White, 1801Princeton St., Alexandria, La. Fires sept. 22, i961, sa. Na. 139,968 18Claims. (Cl. 2li-24) This invention relates to sealing, or safety, doorsfor use on railway cars, such as boxcars or merchandise cars, grainelevators, transport trucks, storage bins, warehouses, or on anyenclosure which it is desired to make burglar proof, air or liquidproof.

It is common practice when necessary to seal a storage compartment ofsome kind to either erect a wooden or paper door, or to put sealingstrips around the edges of the normal door. Sealing is required when thecar, truck or building is to contain a ilowable product, such as grain,to prevent escape of the product, to prevent air and moisture fromreaching the product, or to prevent escape of chemicals used inumigating the product. Many structures designed to be permanentinstallations have been proposed, but, due to inconvenience ofoperation, improper sealing qualities, or excessive cost, these have notcome into common use.

The general object of the present invention is to provide a sealing doorfor permanent installation at a door- 'way in an enclosure which willprovide a positive seal around the door trame and floor, or sill, andcan be operated easily by one man.

A more speciiic object is to provide a sealing door which can be lockedand unlocked from outside the enclosure to ensure safety of thecontents.

A further object is the provision of a door of this type composed of aplurality of relatively movable sections which are designed for pressurecontact with one another and with a door frame to provide a leak-proofseal.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a sealing door whichcan be moved from its door-sealing position and locked in an inoperativeposition where it will not interfere with the normal operation of thecar, truck, etc. on which it is mounted.

Still another object is to provide a door structure which will beextremely rugged, so that little maintenance will be necessary and thedoor will last as long as the vehicle which carries it.

Other objects of the invention will become apparent from the followingdescription of one practical embodiment thereof, when taken inconjunction with the drawings which accompany, and form part of, thisspecification.

In the drawings:

FIGURE l is a side elevation of a freight car with the standard doorbroken away to show the sealing door inside the door opening;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section through the car,illustrating the sealing door structure in elevation as viewed frominside the car with the door in sealing position;

FIGURE 3 is a view similar to FIGURE 2 but with one of the door unitsremoved from sealing position;

FIGURE 4 is a horizontal section th-rough one wall of the car at thedoor opening with the sealing door in locked sealing position, and istaken on the line 4-4 of FIG- URE 2;

FIGURE 5 is a vertical section through the door and adjacent carportions, taken on the line 5-5 of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 6 is an exploded perspective view of the elements making up thedoor;

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on the line 7-7 ofFIGURE 3, showing how the door proper is hung and biased vertically forsealing;

ice

FIGURE 8 is a horizontal section taken on the line 5 8 of FIGURE 3,illustrating the bottom pressure applying mechanism in locked position,and is taken on the line 8-8 of FIGURE 3; and

FIGURE 9 is a horizontal section similar to FIGURE 8 Iwith the door inunlocked condition and moved partially from door-blocking position.

In general, the invention contemplates the provision of a door ofskeletal construction which is movable to and from doorway closingposition, and a car-rier, also movable to and from the doorway, whichslidably mounts closure members for the open-frame door. The carrier isadapted to apply sealing pressure to the door proper, and serves also asa bearing element for the closure members, so that they may be placed inpressure contact with the door.

As mentioned above, the door of the present invention is suitable foruse as a sealing door for many types of enclosures. For purposes ofdisclosure, it is illustrated in conjunction with a boxcar.

Referring to the drawings in detail, a boxcar 1 is shown havingsidewalls 2, in at least one of which there is a doorway 3. Aconventional door 4 is mounted in upper and lower guide tracks 5 and 6carried by the car outer wall for sliding movement along the car wall tocover and uncover the doorway 3. The car has a roof 7 and a floor S.This much of the structure is conventional, and may vary in differentinstallations.

The sealing door consists of a skeletal door 9 mounted for slidingmovement along an overhead track 10, fixed to the car roof. The track isadjacent the door opening so that when the door is abreast the doorway,it is in close proximity to the door jambs 11 and lintel 12. A secondtrack 13, parallel to track 10, supports a carrier frame 14 so that thecarrier frame can be moved independently of, or with, the door 9. Thepaths of the door and carrier frame are closely adjacent, and thecarrier frame and door are practically in surface Contact. The carrierframe, in turn, slidably supports the panel closure members 15 and 16,which allows the closure members to move over the door to close theopenings therein and to move away from door-closing position.

Door 9 is rectangular in shape, and of such size that its edges overlapthe door jambs 11 and lintel 12. The door is formed of vertical sideStiles 17, top and bottom bridge members 18 and 19, and a central bridgemember 20. An upper access opening 21 is framed by the top and centralbridge members and the side Stiles, and a lower access opening 22 isframed by the stiles and the central and bottom bridge members. A strip23 of resilient sealing material is placed along the stiles and topbridge members for sealing contact with the jambs and lintel of thedoorway, as will be described. A strip 24 of sealing material isinserted in a groove 25 in the door bottom for contact with the carfloor.

The track 1t), which supports the door is of rectangular cross-sectionwith its bottom 26 mounted against the car roof. The bottom of the trackhas a central slot 27, which divides the bottom into two, spaced rails28. Pairs of slides 29 are mounted in the track to move along the rails,the slides of each pair being held in spaced relation by a connectingpin 30. Cam links 31 are pivotally mounted on pins 30 and have theirlower ends pivotally connected by pin 32 to a channel 33, screwed to thetop of the door. The cam links are connected by a rod 34 so that theywill move in unison. The upper ends 35 of the cam links project beyondthe tops of the slides 29 for bearing contact with the bottom 26 oftrack 10, when the links are swung about pivot pins 32 toward a verticalposition. Continued pivotal movement of the links after the upper endscontact the track bottom, will exert a down- Ward force upon the door,pressing the strip 24 into tight sealing contact with the floor of thecar. Links 31 are operated by means of a lever 36 which is pivotallymounted by pin 37 between the side walls of channel 33 at one edge ofthe door. The pivot is spaced from one end of the lever to provide aAforce arm 38. A link 39 interconnects the end of arm 38 and theadjacent cam link 31. Raising and lowering of the Voperating arm 40 ofrlever 36 will rock the cam links to lift and depress the door 9. Theedge of the door adjacent the pivot 37 is grooved, as at 41, to permitthe operating arm 40 of lever 36 to seat below the edge surface of thedoor. An eye 42 is mounted in groove 41 and the operating arm of thelever has a slot 43 to fit over the eye. A locking pin 44 is insertedthrough the eye to hold the lever in place in the groove and the doortightly sealed against the oor.

The carrier frame 14 is open, consisting simply of vertical end members45, a top member 46 and a bottom member 47. Roller carriages 48 carryingrollers 49 are mounted on the top member. The rollers ride on rails 50'at the underside of track 13. Track 13 is identical in construction totrack 10. The carrier frame has two intermediate horizontal rails 51 and52 which extend between the end members 45. Each of these is composed ofa pail` of track members 53 similar to tracks 10 and 14 arranged back toback. 'Ihis places the slot 54 of the top track upward and the slot 54of the bottom track downward. These tracks support the panel closuremembers, as will be described.

At the top and bottom of the 4frame carrier there are clamping jacks 55.These are adjacent one end of the frame, that end which is opposite thedoor way when the Y frame is in locking position. Each jack includes atrack section 56, fixed to the vbottom member 47 of the frame carrier,and a similar track section 57, spaced from the section 56 and tied toit by means of a strap 58, extending diagonally between the tracksections and pivoted at one end by a pin 59 to the fixed track section56 and at the other end by pin 60 to the movable track section 57. The

two track sections are arranged so that their sides having slots 61 areface to face, and the strap 58 projects through the slots. Cam links 62,similar to cam links 31, have their ends pivoted at 63 to the xed tracksection 56. Their opposite ends are pivotally connected to slides 64which ride on the rails 65 of the movable track section. The linksproject beyond the slides to form bearing ends for contact with thebottom of track sectionY 57. Links 62 are 'interconnected by tie rod 66.Y

Links 62 are caused to rock about their pivots 63 by means of anoperating mechanism 70. This includes a vertical shaft 67 journalled inbearing brackets secured to one of the Vertical end members 45 of thecarrier Iframe. Shaft 67 has lever arms 68 fixed to its ends forrotation with it. Links 69 interconnect the free ends of lever arms 68and the adjacent cam links 62, so that rotation of shaft 67 will causerocking movement of the cam links. A lever 70 is connectedto shaft 67 toform a Yhandle for rotating the shaft. The handle has a base .portion 71fixed to the shaft, and an outer portion k72Y connected to the baseportion by'a horizontal pivot 73 to allow the major portion of thehandle to swing downwardly and lie adjacent the shaft when not beingused. YBrackets '74 are fastened to the car roof to form stops to Ylimit the outward movement of the movable member 57 of the upper jackassembly 55. A similar bracket 75 is xed to the car floor to form anabutment for one end :of the lowerjackfmember `57. YThe other end of thelower member 57 carries a pivoted latch 76 for engagement with a hook 77on the door frameto hold the member VV57 against outward movement whenin locking position and a hook 78 on'the opposite jamb of the door framewhen the carrier frame is removed from the door. With this arrangement,rotation of shaft 67 will rockV cam links 62 to bring the track members57 intorrcontact with the .closure member 16 has brackets 74 and 75 andpull latch 76 tight against hook 77. As the outward movement of themembers 57 is then stopped, further rocking movement of links 62 exertsa force against the frame carrier, forcing it against the door 9 andpressing the door into sealing relation with the door jambs and lintel.

The upper panel closure I15 has a panel 79 of somewhat larger area thanthe upper access opening 2'1 in door 9 yto overlie that opening andclose it. A sealing strip 80 ismounted on the face of the panel aroundthe perimeter for pressure contact with door 9 about the opening 21V.Brackets 81 are ixed to the inner face of panel 79, and these carryrollers 82 which ride in the track members 53 forming the rails 5-1 and52 of the frame carrier. This mounts the panel on the carrier forsliding movement along the tracks 53.

Clamping jacks 83 are mounted at top and ybottom of the panel 79. Theseconsist of horizontal track sections 84, fixed to the panel, and tracksections 85, mounted upon `support straps 86. Straps 86 have brackets87, similar to brackets `81, fastened to them, and these brackets alsocarry rollers 88 mounted in the tracks 53. Thus, both the panel andstraps 86 have rolling support on the tracks.

The track sections 84 and 85 are interconnected by cam links 89 so thatthe entire assemblywill move asa unit along tracks 53. Cam 1inks89 arepivotaily connected to track sections 84 -by pins 90. The opposite endsof links 89 carry grooved rollers 91 for bearingcontact against thebases of track sections 85. The rollers are held against movementlongitudinally of track sections by means of pins 92 which extendthrough the side anges ofthe track sections and lie in the grooves V93of rollers 91. This permits some movement of the rollers transverselyVof the track sections.

'Ihe cam links 89 are rocked about their pivots 90 by means of rods 94,connected to the track sections and to lever arms95 at the top andbottom of a control Shaft 96. The shaft is journalled in bearings 97carried by the panel 79, and is rotated by an operating arm 98 rigidlymounted on the shaft. The outer end of operating arm 98 is slotted, asat 99, and a nut 100 is slidably mounted in the slot. Nut100 is threadedupon a screw 101, rotatably supported in a plate 102V screwed to theinner face of the panel 79. VThe screw 101 projects outwardly into anopening 103 in the panel, and this end 104 is shaped to receive anoperating key 105 having a mating end 106. When the key is inserted inopening 103, fitted upon the screw end, and rotated, nut 100 will becaused to move along the screw length, thus rotating control shaft 96and rocking cam links 89 about their pivots 90. outwardly taking up alltransverse play of rollers 88 in Ytracks 53. Additional movementofthercam 1nks-will result in outward pressure being put upon panel 79to Ybring it into sealing relation with the door 9.

Lower panel closure member 16 is identical in all respects with theupper one, except insofar as the operating arm is concerned. Therefore,the same reference dition of a prime. Y

Operating arm 107 of the clamping jacks 83' of panel an aperture 108 Vtoreceive a locking pin 109 which also passes through the' legs of abifurcated bracket 110 carried by the panel 79'. Thus, when the lever ismoved to panel-locking position against the panel 79', the end of lever1077wil1 be between the legs of bracket 110 and locking pin 109 canbe-insertedV to hold the lever against movement.

When the sealing door described has been installed Vin a freight car,and it is desired to seal the doorway,

door 9 will be pulled along its track 10 to a position overlying thedoor opening. When the door is in position, operating lever 36 will bepulledvdown causing cam links 31 to rock about their pivots 32 and forcelthe This will cause track section 85 to moveY door downward intosealing contact with the car floor. Locking pin 44 will be placedthrough the lever slot 43 and eye 42 to hold the lever in clampingposition. Carrier frame 14 will be moved along its track 13 to aposition in back of door 9. A latch 111 is operated to hold the framecarrier against movement along its track. This latch may have a latcharm 112 pivoted, at 113, to a bracket 114 carried by the movable tracksection 57 of the upper clamping jack of the carrier frame. The latcharm may engage an opening 115 in one of the brackets 74. When thecarrier frame is in position, lever 70 will be operated to cause theclamping jacks 55 to force the carrier frame against the door 9, and thedoor 9 against the door trame. This will completely seal the edges ofthe door.

The operator can then leave the car through one of the access openings21 or 22. FromI the outside of the car the closure panel member 16 canbe slid along its tracks to its position over the lower access opening22. The lever 107 will be operated to clamp the panel in place, and thelocking pin 199 will be inserted to hold the lever in locked position.Closure panel member 15 will then be moved along its rail 51 to coverthe access opening 21. Key 105 will be inserted in opening 103 to engageend 104 of screw 101. As the key is rotated the clamping jacks 83 willoperate to bring panel 79 into sealing contact with the face of door 9.The doorway will now be completely sealed, and cannot be opened exceptby an authorized person having a proper key.

When the door is to be opened, a reverse procedure will be used. Key 105will be used to release closure panel member 15, which can be slid backto allow access to the car. Closure panel member 16 can be released andmoved back, and the carrier frame can be unlocked and rolled back out ofthe way. Finally, the door 9 can be released and moved away from thedoorway. If desired, all of the parts, except closure panel member 15,can be locked in their inoperative positions to hold them stationarywhen not in use. As the closure panel member 15 is on the carrier frameit cannot move in front of the doorway.

While in the above one practical embodiment of the invention has beendisclosed, it will be understood that the structural details describedand shown are merely by way of example, and the invention may take otherforms within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. A sealing door for an enclosure having a door and a sidewall with adoorway therein comprising, a door supported upon the enclosure forsliding movement along a path to and from doorway closing position, aframe carrier supported upon the enclosure for sliding movement parallelto and adjacent the path of movement of the door, iixed abutments on theenclosure, and clamping jacks mounted on the frame carrier forengagement with the abutments to exert pressure between the abutmentsand the frame carrier to press the frame carrier against the door andthe door into sealing contact with the enclosure about the doorway.

2. A sealing door as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the means supportingthe door is a track, and there are means to bear against the track andexert downward pressure on the door to press the door into sealingcontact with the enclosure floor.

3. A Sealing door as claimed in claim 2 wherein, there is a sealingstrip around the door intermediate the door and the enclosure wallaround the doorway, and a sealing strip along the bottom of the door.

4. A sealing door as claimed in claim 1 wherein, the door has at leastone access opening therein, and there is a closure panel member mountedon the carrier frame for sliding movement thereon for moving the panelclosure member to and from a position overlying the access opening inthe door, and means for clamping the closure panel member in sealingrelation with the door about the access opening.

5. A sealing door as claimed in claim 4 wherein, the means for clampingthe closure panel member is accessible from outside the enclosure.

6. A sealing door as claimed in claim 5 wherein, there is a removablekey for operating the means for clamping the closure panel member.

7. A sealing door for an enclosure having a oor and a sidewall with adoorway therein comprising, a pair of parallel overhead closely spacedtracks supported from the enclosure parallel with the enclosure sidewalland extending across the doorway and to a point removed from thedoorway, a door hung from the one of the said pair of tracks adjacentthe sidewall for sliding movement to `and from positions overlying thedoorway, a frame carrier hung from the other one of said pair of tracksof sliding movement therealong, iixed abutments on the enclosureparallel to the tracks and on the side of the tracks remote from theenclosure wall, and clamping jacks mounted on the frame carrierintermediate the frame carrier and the aboutments, and means to operatethe clamping jacks to exert pressure between the abutments and the framecarrier to press the frame carrier against the door and the door intosealing relation with the enclosure wall Aabout the doorway.

8. A sealing door as claimed in claim 7 wherein, the clamping jacksinclude a section iixed to the frame carrier and a movable section forengagement with the abutment, with cam links interconnecting thesections and means to rock the cam links to increase the distancebetween the jack sections.

9. A sealing door as claimed in claim 7 wherein, there are meanssupporting the door from the track including rockable means for raisingand lowering the door relative to the track, whereby the door may belowered into sealing contact with the enclosure floor.

l0. A sealing door as claimed in claim 9| wherein there are means toactuate the rockable means, and means to lock the actuating means tohold the door in sealing relation with the enclosure floor.

11. A sealing door as claimed in claim 7 wherein, the door has at leastone access opening therein, the frame carrier has a horizontal rail, aclosure panel member is mounted on the rail for sliding movementtherealong to and from a position overlying the access opening in thedoor, yand the closure panel member carries clamping jacks to press theclosure panel member into sealing relation with the door about theaccess opening.

12. A sealing door as claimed in claim 11 wherein, the means forclamping the closure panel member is accessible from outside theenclosure.

13. A sealing door as claimed in claim l2 wherein, there is a removablekey for operating the means for clamping the closure panel member.

14. A sealing door for an enclosure having a oor and a sidewall with adoorway therein comprising, a pair of parallel overhead closely spacedtracks supported from the enclosure parallel with the enclosure sidewalland extending across the doorway and to a point removed from thedoorway, a door hung from the one of the said pair of tracks adjacentthe sidewall for sliding movement to and from positions overlying thedoorway, means to press the door downwardly into sealing relation withthe enclosure floor, the door having upper and lower access openingstherein, a frame carrier hung from the other one of said pair of tracksfor sliding movement therealong, iixed abutrnents on the enclosureparallel to the tracks and on the side of the tracks remote from theenclosure sidewall, clamping jacks mounted on the frame carrierintermediate the frame carrier and the abutments, means to operate theclamping jacks to exert pressure between the abutments and the framecarrier to press the frame carrier against the door and the door intosealing relation with the enclosure wall about the doorway, a pair of:con the rails lfor movement to and from positions overlying Vthepupper`and lower access openings in the door, and clamping jacks carried bythe closure panel members operable to press the respective closure panelmembers into sealing relation with the door about the respective accessopenings.

15. A sealing door Ias claimed in claim 14 wherein each of said clampingjacks includes `a track section fixed to the member that carries thejack and a movable track section, the xed and movable track sectionsbeing inter- ;connected by cam links, and means to rock the cam links tovary the spacingbetweenthe xed and movable track sections. p

16. A sealing door as claimed in claim 15 wherein there is means to lock`the respective clamping jacks in clamping position. Y

17. A sealing door as claimed in claim 16 wherein,

the means to rock thecam links ofY the clamping jacks of one of theclosure panelimembers is accessible from outside the enclosure.

18. A sealing door as claimed in claim 17 wherein, there is a removablekey for operating the means to rock the cam links accessible fromoutside the enclosure.

No references cited.

